Greenwich woman vanishes; police find abandoned car in Westport

Debra Friedman, STAFF WRITER

Published 9:48 pm, Wednesday, April 21, 2010

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Michiko Kamhi, 48, of Florence Road in Greenwich, was reported missing since Monday night, police said Wednesday. Kamhi, who is described as a 5-foot-4, 118-pound Asian woman with black shoulder-length hair, was last seen leaving her Greenwich home driving a gray 2002 Volvo V70 wagon with the family dog, a white mixed golden doodle. Photo courtesy of the Greenwich Police Department. less

Michiko Kamhi, 48, of Florence Road in Greenwich, was reported missing since Monday night, police said Wednesday. Kamhi, who is described as a 5-foot-4, 118-pound Asian woman with black shoulder-length hair, ... more

Photo: Contributed Photo

Greenwich woman vanishes; police find abandoned car in Westport

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A multiagency missing person investigation continued Wednesday after a Greenwich woman vanished earlier this week, leaving only her car behind on a small side street in Westport, police said.

Michiko Kamhi, 48, of 89 Florence Road, has not been seen since leaving her home at 8 p.m. Monday with her family dog, a white golden doodle.

Greenwich police classified Kamhi as a missing person when Westport police located Kamhi's Volvo abandoned on a side street near the beach on Long Island Sound Tuesday night.

Westport police Capt. Foti Koskinas said Wednesday afternoon that his department is aiding Greenwich police in the search, but if it is determined there was foul play that occurred in Westport, police in that town may take charge of the investigation.

"At this point, we are looking at a person who may be suicidal or endangered and we are still looking for her at the request of the Greenwich Police Department," Koskinas said. "If there is a determination foul play was involved in our jurisdiction, we may switch roles and take the lead."

Koskinas said a resident called Westport police to report that a car had been parked on Bradley Street for more than a day without moving. The small side street is not an area normally patrolled by police, Koskinas said.

After locating the car, a gray 2002 Volvo V70 wagon, police from Westport and Greenwich, along with State Police, launched a sea and land search with Westport K-9 and marine units.

A bloodhound traced Kamhi's scent from the car to the area of Compo Mill Beach, where the scent was lost, police said. The distance from the car to where the scent died is a mile, police said.

"The (dog) tracked the scent to a beach walking path," said Koskinas. "He could have lost the scent due to the wind, or the salt water. There are a lot of factors, but we are pretty confident in the dog's tracking."

The search continued Tuesday night into Wednesday with aid from the state Department of Environmental Protection, which assisted the Westport police's Marine Unit in patrolling the coastline and the nearby Compo Mill Pond.

Police searched the immediate coastline as well as a mile offshore using the marine unit, Koskinas said. The marine unit ended its search Wednesday afternoon, but police said the boat would be redeployed if any further leads developed. Koskinas said Kamhi's car did not yield any substantial clues about her location.

"At this point, the Greenwich Police Department took custody of the car," said Koskinas. "There is nothing that would lead us to say either there is foul play or suicide. There was no note found inside the car."

Capt. Mark Marino, head of Greenwich police's criminal investigations division, said patrol units were notified about Kamhi on Monday and quickly determined she may have left town.

"We were able to determine she might possibly be in the Westport area," Marino said. "We alerted them to the fact, and late (Tuesday) evening, they notified us they had located the vehicle."

Kahmi is described as a 5-foot-4, 118-pound Asian woman with black, shoulder-length hair, according to police.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Greenwich Police Department at 203-622-8054 or the Westport Police Department at 203-341-6080.